2016 Football Preview
The Spartan football team is ready for battle this season as they welcome some exciting new talent while also keeping a tough group of returning players.
The Spartan football team is ready for battle this season as they welcome some exciting new talent while also keeping a tough group of returning players.
The Spartans are coached by Steve King, offensive coordinator Zach Stich and defensive coordinator Korey Fry. Last year they had a 3-5 record with big wins over Minnesota West, Northland, and Vermilion.
On the offensive side of the ball, the Spartans return quarterback Jared Olsgaard, who suffered a season-ending injury last year. Andrew Tysdal, a 2015 Fergus Falls graduate, will bring his vast strength and power as an offensive lineman to make sure these two are protected. Also returning are the explosive receiving combo of Fatah Malone and Nate Christianson.
“We returned a lot of components of our offense,” Spartans offensive coordinator Zach Stich said. “With another year of experience on the offensive side of the ball, things should begin to click earlier and make it easier for our incoming freshmen to learn our program.” Another new player that Stich is excited about is 2016 Hillcrest graduate Chris Tungseth, who Stich hopes to use as a “Rob Gronkowski” type of versatile weapon on the offense.
The defense will have a newer crop of talent this year, as many players had their final season last year. New recruit, Battle Lake graduate Malik Gill, will add his lightning fast speed to the mix. After an injury in the first series of the first game last year, Fergus Falls alumni will return with his seasoned prowess at linebacker.
“This season, defensively, will be a challenge to start out with a young Core group, Fry said. “We will have one, maybe two, returners from last season's defense. Last season I believe we caught a lot of teams off guard, do to the fact we ran multiple defensive sets out of our base 4-2-5 defense. This year we look to continue our success defensively with our main goal of forcing a team to march the field. If we limit a team’s big play ability, there is no reason we shouldn't have great defensive outing.”
North Dakota State College of Science and Dakota College will be the team’s to beat in the West Division, while Rochester CTC and Central Lakes College will challenge for the top spot in the Minnesota College Athletic Conference.